Freeze Frame
by TwoCentsForFree
Summary: PRE-RENT. Mark's first glimpse into the world of filmmaking.


**A/N: Thanks for all the continued support. Something a little bit different this time. Reviews are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!-The Fish **

Freeze Frame

Mark's first glimpse into the world of filmmaking. PRE-RENT.

"But _why_?" the five-year-old whined, "why do I have to stay at Grandma and Grandpa's? I wanna stay with you!" His mother glanced back at him through the rearview mirror. She sighed.

"Sweetheart, we've been through this--Mommy and Daddy need a little quiet time."

"I won't make any noise!" Mark protested.

"What I mean is, Mommy and Daddy need a little time to be all by themselves. So we're going to go away for a couple of days, and you're going to stay with Grandma and Grandpa. Okay?"

_No,_ Mark thought, _It's not okay. _But before he could say another word, the car pulled into the driveway. Mom knocked on the door while the boy gathered his belongings.

"There he is!" The sudden, familiar voice echoed from the doorway. Grandma stood there, holding her arms open for a hug. Obedient, Mark went to greet her. "How's my baby doing?"

"Mmm-kay," he mumbled, pressed against her bosom. Normally, he wouldn't have minded the arrangements, but a whole weekend away seemed like an eternity.

"It's a phase he's going through," he heard his mother say. "He's become very clingy recently. I just don't know what to do…have you any idea how difficult it is to get to work on time when you have to pry a kindergartener off of your leg every morning?" The older woman laughed.

"Like you said, it's only a phase. You just run along and have a good time--don't worry. I'm sure Mark will hardly notice you're not around." Mom smiled.

"Thanks. I'm leaving now, Marky," she said, turning to her son, "can I get a hug goodbye?" Instantly, the child did as he was told. "Be a good boy for Grandma and Grandpa," Mom added. And then, she was gone. Mark stood in the driveway, watching as the car became nothing but a speck in the distance.

"I was just about to make some cupcakes," Grandma called to him. "Would you like to help me?" Mark's eyes lit up.

"Can I lick the spoon?!" The woman smiled.

"Sure, honey." As he went inside, Mark thought that maybe this wasn't going to be so bad.

The hours passed quickly, and soon it was time to get ready for bed. It was now that the child began to get homesick once again. Halfway through _Scooby Doo_, Grandpa walked in.

"What're you up to, kiddo?" he asked. The boy shrugged.

"Nothin'." It was evident from the look on his face that something was wrong. Grandpa took a guess as to what it might be.

"Missing your parents a little, Mark?" Surprised that the old man had guessed correctly, the youth couldn't stop the coming of the tears to his icy blue eyes.

"Uh-huh…" he sniffled. The elder sat down next to his grandson, trying to think of a way to cheer the boy up. Finally, he got an idea.

"Hey…I've got something neat to show you. Want to see it?" Mark thought it over.

"Okay."

"Great--I'll be right back." Grandpa left, leaving the child to guess what the surprise might be. After a few minutes, the man returned, carrying something. "Know what this is?" he asked. Curious, Mark examined the object.

"No."

"This, my boy, is a video camera. You put the film in, press the button, and look through this part--it's called the lens. And whatever you point the camera at ends up on film. And when the film is all used up, you put it in a special machine and watch it. You can make movies. Nice, isn't it?" The boy was mesmerized.

"Can I try?" Grandpa smiled.

"Sure, but be careful." Mark gently took the camera and held it up to his face. He liked the way it felt. "One more thing," Grandpa included, "whenever you start filming, you've gotta say, 'action.'"

"Why?"

"Because that's what directors say when they start filming."

"Oh." Mark once again lifted the camera. "Action!" For a few minutes, he walked around the living room, aiming the camera at whatever he could see. Finally, time was up.

"All right," said Grandpa, taking the device, "that's about it for tonight." Mark sulked.

"Aww…can I play with it tomorrow?"

"Sure." That night, he was sure to go to sleep right away, knowing that he'd be busy making movies when morning came.

He was up early Saturday morning. All Mark could think about was using the camera, pausing for only a minute to think of the delicious chocolate chip pancakes Grandma made for breakfast. No sooner had he finished, he ran off to find Grandpa.

"Be careful," was the only warning the man gave before sending his grandson into the backyard. Camera in hand, Mark tirelessly searched for something to film. There were birds, but they would always fly away before too long. And he was too scared to film the neighbor's dog. Things weren't exactly going the way Mark had hoped they would.

"Is everything okay, love?" Grandma asked during lunch. The boy sighed.

"I'm tryin' to make a movie with Grandpa's camera, but there's nothin' around here to make a movie with!" The woman smiled.

"Well, let's see if we can't fix that. I have to run a few errands later on. Maybe you'll find something to film if you come with me." Mark shrugged. It was worth a try.

That afternoon, Mark accompanied his grandmother about town. She was right, he decided. There were _lots _of interesting things to see outside the backyard.

"Look at that!" he exclaimed, pointing the camera at the street corner; a clown was handing out balloons. The two stopped and watched for a minute as Floppo the Clown twisted the colored balloons into different shapes. Still, they pressed on. The observant little boy didn't let anything escape the cameralens--traffic, people, animals--everything was fair game.

"Did you guys have a good time?" Grandpa asked when they arrived home. Grandma spoke first.

"We went to the store, and Marky got some pretty nice footage along the way." Grandpa arched his eyebrows.

"Is that true, Sport? Did you get some stuff on film today?"

"Yeah!" Mark exclaimed. "It was really cool! There was this clown, and these guys roller-skating in the park, and there was a doggy, too!"

"A doggy, huh?"

"Yeah! A lady was takin' it for a walk. And when she wasn't looking…the dog pooped!" The very mention of the incident dissolved the boy into a fit of giggles, and even Grandpa chuckled.

"And you got _all that _on tape?"

"Yup!"

"Well, I think you've earned yourself a glass of lemonade after all that hard work, what do you say?" But Mark was already making his way to the kitchen.

Sunday dawned cold and rainy; not at all the kind of day to film outside. But as Mark went to turn the camera on, he noticed something. The machine made a funny clicking sound. Curious, he asked Grandpa what it was.

"That means the film's all used up. Now it's time to add the finishing touches and watch your movie." This made the child happy.

"Can we watch it right now?" Grandpa shook his head.

"No, not right now. We'll watch it tonight when your Mommy and Daddy come to pick you up." Mark reluctantly agreed, knowing that it would be hard to wait all day. For the rest of the afternoon, he hung around, anxious for evening to come. But at last it did. The little boy had never been happier to see his parents.

"Mom! Dad!" he cried, launching himself at them, "Guess what?! I made a movie!" Daddy scooped him up in a bear hug.

"You made a movie?" he repeated. "All by yourself?" Mark beamed.

"All by myself!"

"And we were just about to watch it," Grandma said. "You two are just in time." Everyone went into the living room where Grandpa had set up the film projector. The finished product was better than Mark had expected it would be.

"Marky, that was amazing!" Mommy said when it was over. She gave him a squeeze. "I'm so proud of my little filmmaker!"

"My favorite part," Daddy cut in, "was when the dog pooped." Mark laughed.

"Mine too!" He turned to Grandpa. "Can I play with your camera some more, Grandpa?" Before the answer could be given, Mommy put the kibosh on it.

"Not tonight, baby. We've gotta go home. You can make more movies next time, all right?" Mark didn't want to go.

"Five more minutes? _Please_?"

"Listen to your mother," Grandpa advised him. "And next time, we'll make an even better one."

"All right…" After a minute or two of pouting, Mark perked up again. "Hey, maybe I can take the camera to school one day and film my friends, or maybe I could take it to Temple, or maybe--"

"One step at a time, Woody Allen," Daddy remarked, carrying him out to the car, "one step at a time." The entire ride home, Mark thought about everything that had happened that weekend. From now on, he would always look forward to going to Grandma and Grandpa's. And, deep inside, the five-year-old couldn't shake the feeling that his life had somehow changed.

**A/N: Dedicated to my own grandparents, who helped all ten of us grandkids realize our dreams and who continually give us the support to follow them. Happy 50th Anniversary.**


End file.
